Shin Megami Tensei
Background Shin Megami Tensei is a particularly queer though beloved series involving incredibly powerful and incredibly young characters who fight powerful gods, demons and similar entities originating from an alternate reality as they try to find their place in the universe. It has many sub-games that deviate from the core franchise in the form of the Devil Summoner, Devil Survivor, Strange Journey and Devil Saga series as well as many more. SMT Cosmology SMT Cosmology Note: As a result of continuously changing writers, this point of view is subject to change or become outdated. I will attempt to update it appropriately to match with the releases of future games. Note 2: What has been detailed here is only based on the writer’s understanding and thus though written with the intention of acting as a rough guide, it is NOT meant to be seen as an offical recount or understanding of the series. That is, what is read may not be the case in reality and thus I ask everyone to, whenever they get the time, to play the games themselves or watch the Youtube videos for walkthroughs after which they are free to carry out their own investigations. As heavily implied in games such as Shin Megami Tensei 4 Apocalypse, Shin Megami Tensei follows a roughly Buddhist cosmology with some noticeable differences. That is, the Universe consists of six realms each of which have their own time and hierarchy differences. Levels of Consciousness This represents what the characters in the games can perceive and for comparison, can even be compared to “power levels”. [https://vimagine.wikia.com/wiki/File:Screenshot_2017-04-14-17-52-51.png It is very strongly linked with higher dimensionality where higher beings cannot be perceived by lower entities] though it should be strongly kept in mind that similar effects can occur simply due to the special skills of their particular race as evidence by Navarre managing to hide himself even from the likes of Flynn, a Messiah and one of the most powerful characters in the game. As implied by Shin Megami Tensei Imagine, [https://vimagine.wikia.com/wiki/Angels_(Shin_Megami_Tensei) the level of consciousness of the various races increases with every rank]. In the lowest hierarchy, there is hell based on the buddhist spiritual plane of enormous suffering for an incredible number of years due to extremely bad Karma. [https://vimagine.wikia.com/wiki/File:One_Kind_Of_Hell_SMT_4.png This is where Lucifer fell in Shin Megami Tensei 4, when he “fell to the earth”] and Merkabah stated he should once again return inside it upon defeat. This has also resulted in his “death” forcing his reincarnation into that of a girl’s form, Hikari, who was revealed to be one of his avatars. It’s possible his fellow fallen angels had to go through similar circumstances. World 2: The Preta World This is where where beings of a lesser existence live out their lives as hungry existences. Though they live on earth alongside human beings from their perspective the Earth is much different to how humans perceive it due to their lesser nature. "The form given to those who are cast down into the Preta Realm, one of the Six Realms of Buddhist scriptures. Those who lived extravagant lives are said to be cast into the Preta Realm after death. Preta are constantly tormented by hunger and thirst, but whenever they put something to their mouths, it bursts into flame, and so they are eternally deprived of food and drink. Their figures are gaunt, except for their bellies which are strangely swollen." —''Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE'' compendium = World 3: Human World = Then, there is the human world which is comparable to a normal space-time continuum. Of this human world, there exists [https://vimagine.wikia.com/wiki/File:20170225073649.jpg infinite variations] that are transcended by various supernatural worlds. It is the standard setting of almost every Shin Megami Tensei video game. On this plane of existence the demons are, due to the lack of magnetite (energy they use to sustain themselves) much weaker. = World 4-6: The Demon World = There exists an infinitely expanding demon world in each game whether it be that of Makai, the demon world, the schwartzwel or an aspect of the expanse. The hells and heavens formed by people’s thoughts exist here. Though the name may alter the format stays roughly the same. That is, there exists 6 higher worlds, and a possibly infinite lower number of them for each of the countless world view where the other world views exist simultaneously side by side in their own pocket dimension. The strongest higher worlds made and existing as a part of the demons are capable of being established as the new “truest heaven”, replacing YHVH’s own as the creator albeit only if they can beat him in battl. However, YHVH has already proven himself to be one of if not the most powerful god and has placed every world below his own though they are all still just a part of the Demon World. He has only ever been replaced by other gods when he’s been temporarily defeated by man. Mid-high tiers such as the weakest of the mother goddesses: Ouroboros, embodies the very concept of infinity, whether “empty” or not, allowing her to manage to aid in overthrowing the Great Will in Shin Megami Tensei Strange Journey, yet even more impressively, this is shown to be outclassed by much higher domains. In Strange Journey, 4 sectors exist beyond this transcendent space including that of Jack’s squad made using special technology they were granted by special forces. Though they are indeed just “pocket dimensions” their combined power of this collection is said to be capable of consuming an entire space-time continuum which makes said given what was said previously. As the Creator God, YHVH elevated the World of Angels introduced in Shin Megami Tensei Imagine from one of the heavens encompassed in the expanse to that of a domain infinitely superior to every other place and placed guardians at particular levels that adhere to their hierarchy, with the worlds themselves having a hierarchal difference (SMT 4 A, japanese translation). These structures, more or less, make up the entirety of a timeline or “reality”. YHVH himself, of course exists beyond this in a world outside all of the reality. The Diamond Realm is the personal realm of En No Ouzuno. It is described as a place where the power of people cannot reach as a part of nature and thus it approaches infinity (the Axiom). Though it is not beyond the reach of YHVH as he sent both angels and demons after the Messiahs from his position in multiple games, it is still most likely the one of the highest realms possibly shown where the events of other games can be viewed and manipulated at the behest of the entities that live there as possible worlds. It is however, only accessible after YHVH’s defeat. Then, however, there exists other special worlds that transcend even these structures. One such world is the Akarana Corridor of the Devil Summoner universe which is a void that transcends an infinite number of these structures. Possibilities are the highest structures to exist in SMT beside the Axiom itself as even Stephen who exists simultaneously across every world as a transcendent being, is still somewhat subjected to them. In fact, it seems to act as a kind of higher level demon world where higher gods and demons create their pocket dimensions among the corridors. The World that was not a world The Endless is the only description of the place the Empty space that exists beyond everything where humans, gods and demons are born, return to upon death and are reborn again. It’s the part of the Axiom where the consciousness of humanity forms the bodies of the characters after they are damaged beyond the repair of what can be fixed by the expanse. Considering this is the place Commander Gore was travelling to after “becoming All” via merging with the consciousness of the Planet this is most likely the part of the Axiom characters like Mem Aleph and Dagda are trying to reach via becoming one with, or are aspects of nature. Reaching this place is the goal of those who attempt to attain nirvana, but one can also reach this state by being completely destroyed or “return to their shapeless existences” via space-time erasure as was the case in Shin Megami Tensei Strange Journey. Reaching this place upon death is not the same as reaching it upon your own strength, however. In fact, as revealed in an interview it is entirely different from death and those that reach this place via that method are doomed to be reformed by human consciousness and return to the cycle by the power of observation as long as humans exist in the Universe they belong to. The cycle of transmigration is the constant recycling of human souls. The only known method of transcending it is moving beyond the need for humans entirely (gods/demons) becoming a part of it or touching even a small part of the Axiom itself, both of which would allow one to become a part of it. The latter option seems superior, as it requires the character to transcend all of a space and time becoming a Buddha-like entity whilst the others become part of the Axiom that is still limited to being called “Space and time” or that is, the Spiritual World as stated in SMT 4 and Imagine. The Axiom in its entirety, cannot be comprehended by humanity’s observation in which all transcending entities known are limited by. Only Stephen managed to touch a small part of its true self. Characters The Collective Unconscious [http://vimagine.wikia.com/wiki/Alice_(Shin_Megami_Tensei) Alice] The Great Reason/Axiom Stephen The Player Shin Megami Tensei Imagine Protagonist Nanashi Aleph Demi-Fiend Flynn The Hero Seraph Saint Germain Mido YHVH Lucifer Merkabah Mem Aleph Raidou Lucifer's Generals Biblical Fiends Maya Tiamat Ouroboros [http://vimagine.wikia.com/wiki/Angels_(Shin_Megami_Tensei) Angels (Classes)] Fairies (Classes) Jack Frost